Believe
by BlackTiger6
Summary: You never really know what you want until your courting death. You never really see that your dream's come true until it's come and gone. You never really realize that you love somebody until they're gone. Max gets shot and Fang tries to help. Max/Fang One-Shot


"Go, go, go!" I shout, and the Flock barely look back as they launch into the air. I give an extra burst of speed, snapping out my wings and jumping into the air. Wind whistled past my ears and my wings billowed. The remains of the School crumble and crash below me, but I don't look down. _We did it, _I think, relieved. I squint as I do a 360, trying to catch a glance of the Flock. When I find them they are barely silhouettes in the sky, almost to the horizon. They are safe. We are safe.

I turn around and glance at the School before winging to the left and following my family North to Arizona. "I'm coming home, Mom," I promise, "after three years, I'm coming home." We had been in the School for three years. Three, tough, harsh, and very hard years. But we pulled through, and here we are. I close my eyes and mutter a thanks to the heavens. Below me, a snapping twig is my only warning.

The gun fires, the sound echoing across the tropical rain forest. The birds scream and fly up. I've got to get away from here. I start pumping my wings as a fiery pain erupts in my chest. _Not now_, I groan as the pain gets fiercer, and feel something warm against my skin. My first thought is that it is the mist and fog that laid thick on the trees that cover the gunman, but when I look down, my heart stops. It is blood. The gunman works for the School. Dread fills my mind as I start spiraling down, my still wings providing little resistance to the air.

I close my eyes, tears flooding down my face as I collapse on the ground. I've failed. The great Maximum Ride is dying, alone, and without help. I give a sob as the pain and guilt fills me. "Why?" I whisper as the edges of my vision start to go black with blood loss. Blood... it's pouring down my abdomen, soaking my shirt and pants. I don't do anything to stop it. In the distance, I hear someone calling my name. I groggily widen my rapidly closing eyes as an angel lands beside me, horror and desperation written on his face. But angels aren't supposed to be sad. I weakly reach out for his hand, and try to tell him it's all okay, but the words can't form on my lips. They aren't true. Both of us know it.

"Max! Max, don't," he sobs, leaning over me, cupping my face. "Don't leave me."

"Shh," I whisper, but I don't mean it. Fear has overtaken me: I'm leaving my family too soon. But it's my job to be strong, so that the Flock doesn't have too. "don't worry."

"I can't do it without you," Fang cries, "Stay with me please! Max, just hold on." he tries to gather me in his arms, but I feebly push his arms away.

"It'll be okay," I promise. "I love you all."

"Max, no!" Fang pleads, and I weakly smile at him. But it doesn't fool either of us. Tears are pouring down our faces like rain in a storm.

"Tell the Flock that I love them," I continue softly, the pain ebbing away as love washes over me. I love my Flock. And I always will. I clutch Fang's hand tightly as his lips form silent pleas. "Tell them to not worry. Tell Angel to be strong. That she'll make a good leader if she waits a few years. Tell Gazzy that he should never grow up, and never stop laughing. Tell Iggy that you don't need eyes to see, and black is more comforting than white. Tell Nudge-" my voice breaks, "tell Nudge that she's beautiful and she should never take no for an answer. Tell Ella that she's the best little sister ever. Dr. Martinez that I couldn't have wished for a better mom. Jeb... tell him I forgive him. And- and Fang," I look into his desperate eyes. My voice softens, curbed with love. "Fang. Being a leader isn't about helping and getting everyone out alive, as I've learned. It's about understanding, and believing in others. Listen. Hope. Feel. Love. They're your family. Let them in."

"Max, please," he begs quietly, eyes run dry. "I can't do it without you. You're the leader. They love you. They need you."

I finish, stronger, "Bravery isn't about never crying, or being fearless. It's about standing up. It's about realizing people love you." I blink, a stray tear falling down my cheek. "Do it for me."

"I will," he says, brushing hair out of my eyes. He tries to give me a smile, but it falters and he hangs his head down. My heart warms as I weakly lift his head, my vision almost all black. This is it. Goodbye. Previously I had thought I would do this in seventy, eighty years from now. But now I know differently. It may be early. But it's right. I'm with who I want to be.

"I'll watch over you," I vow, "I always will. I promise."

"Max-" he begins, but I lean forward and brush my lips against his.

"A promise," I whisper, looking into his denying eyes, innocent and full of love, "I love you Fang. It was always you, not Dylan."

"I love you too," he replies, and my eyes close and I slump into the arms of my love, darkness enveloping me as he cries over my corpse, the words we admitted hanging in his eyes.

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**Please tell me what you think! I'm not used to writing heavy stuff, so please tell me what I can do to fix it! Thanks! There's a sequel up, about the events in Fang's view. Check it out! It's a short story called Breaking Point.**

**Tiger**


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